Hundreds of staff exited the iconic gates of Wormwood Scrubs in west London this morning to protest its disgusting and dangerous conditions.

It appears that the protest came without any warning.

The jail – where Rolling Stones stars Keith Richards and Mick Jagger spent a night on drugs charges – was described to have "levels of Dickensian squalor," according to a report published by the Prison Reform Trust yesterday.

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FAMED: Wormwood Scrubs' gates appeared in TV hit Porridge

There are fears that legal high Spice-addled prisoners are becoming more difficult to handle.

Rat-infested and overcrowded, it appears the staff have had enough.

The phone lines were left unmanned this morning as prisoners were left in their cells as the staff left the building.

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NOTORIOUS: The prison holds Category B male prisoners

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "An incident is underway at HMP Wormwood Scrubs and we are taking steps to resolve it.

"As a temporary measure, all prisoners will remain in cells and are being supervised. There is no danger to staff or the wider public."

Laura Janes, the Legal Director for The Howard League for Penal reform, wrote on Twitter: "Cannot get in to wormwood scrubs to represent young person who does not feel safe as staff have walked out because staff don't feel safe (sic)."

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Yesterday's damning report revealed how two inmates at high risk of suicide or self harm were found to be in cells filled with jagged glass from a broken window.

Some lags were using torn sheets as a makeshift toilet screen and others had stuffed paper into broken windows to "keep out the weather," it found.

Inspectors were visited by rats "every day and night" of their visit to the prison which holds 1,300.

HM Wormwood Scrubs was once home to Ian Brady, Pete Doherty and Leslie Grantham.